Scottish Executive

Ambulance Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12411 by Susan Deacon on 25 January 2001, how many times the protocols agreed between the Scottish Ambulance Service and health boards and NHS Trusts have been amended in each of the last five years, broken down by health board area.

Susan Deacon: The information requested is not available centrally. This is an operational matter for the Scottish Ambulance Service and you may wish to write to Mr Adrian Lucas, Chief Executive, Scottish Ambulance Service, National Headquarters, Tipperlinn Road, Edinburgh EH10 5UU with your request.

Cancer

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been diagnosed with mesothelioma in (a) the Greater Glasgow Health Board area and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.

Susan Deacon: Figures for the period 1993-97 (the most recent year for which completed information is available) are as follows:

  

 

Number of Registrations
  


 

Greater Glasgow Health Board
  

Scotland
  



1993
  

50
  

132
  



1994
  

48
  

167
  



1995
  

41
  

155
  



1996
  

56
  

173
  



1997
  

40
  

142

Cancer

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the statement by Professor Julian Peto, Senior Epidemiologist at the Cancer Research Institute in London, that there are now more deaths from mesothelioma than cervical cancer, what plans it has to ensure that Scottish hospitals participate in all future clinical trails related to those currently being carried out at Newcastle General Hospital.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive encourages patient entry into clinical trials but has no locus in setting these up.

  The Clinical Standards Board for Scotland’s core principles for cancer care, against which cancer services will be assessed, includes the statement that "Those involved in delivering cancer services will try to increase the participation of patients in well designed, ethical clinical trials".

  The decision as to eligibility for inclusion and agreement to participate in a specific clinical trial is a matter for agreement between clinicians and their patients in individual cases.

Cancer

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what counselling is offered to people diagnosed with mesothelioma and their families.

Susan Deacon: There is no distinction between counselling and other support services offered to people suffering from differing forms of cancer. Referral to the appropriate services would normally be made by medical staff after discussion and agreement with patients.

Cancer

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make the drug Modafinil available to sufferers of sleep apnoea.

Susan Deacon: Modafinil is authorised for the treatment of narcolepsy, a condition associated with attacks of daytime sleep. It is not authorised for the treatment of sleep apnoea.

  The use of medicines outside the terms of their marketing authorisation is allowed under UK law, where the clinician believes it is in the best interests of the patient. In these situations the prescriber takes responsibility for the safety and efficacy of the medicine.

Central Heating

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the rules governing the central heating initiative will be published, what the results were of home energy efficiency schemes in 1999-2000 and whether it will describe the benefits from both schemes.

Jackie Baillie: The rules governing the central heating programme will be published tomorrow.

  In 1999-2000, 47,000 low-income households benefited from government-funded home energy efficiency schemes. Their homes were insulated and the householders given energy advice, resulting in a range of savings. The Warm Deal for owner occupiers resulted in average annual savings of around £90 and reductions in CO2 emissions of 1.1 tonnes per dwelling. A full report for 1999-2000 will be published shortly and made widely available.

  Home insulation leads to substantially lower fuel bills which can either be taken as savings or used to provide more warmth at the same cost. It helps combat condensation damp and so threats to health, and to the condition of the housing stock, are reduced. Reductions in CO2 emissions help combat the threat of global warming.

  The new programme combines home insulation and central heating and so the benefits described will be increased. The central heating programme will be central to our plans to tackle fuel poverty and help Scotland’s most vulnerable households.

Drug Misuse

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many registered drug addicts there were in (a) each health board area and (b) each of Scotland’s cities in each of the last five years, expressed as a number and as a percentage of population.

Iain Gray: Following the closure of the Addicts Index in April 1997, the term "registered drug addict" is no longer used. However, the following statistics show the number of new problem drug users attending specialist treatment services or GP practices, for treatment for their drug misuse, for each of the past five years, as recorded in the Scottish Drug Misuse Database:

  


Health Board of residence
  

Year
  





1995-96
  

1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000
  



Ayrshire & Arran
  

189
  

302
  

357
  

139
  

1,183
  



Borders
  

43
  

58
  

21
  

79
  

78
  



Argyll & Clyde
  

730
  

958
  

1,365
  

1,464
  

1,237
  



Fife
  

221
  

384
  

362
  

395
  

430
  



Greater Glasgow
  

3,066
  

3,220
  

2,837
  

2,864
  

3,223
  



Highland
  

59
  

58
  

61
  

75
  

124
  



Lanarkshire
  

328
  

353
  

320
  

426
  

536
  



Grampian
  

750
  

947
  

1,056
  

1,316
  

1,344
  



Lothian
  

1,770
  

1,885
  

1,789
  

1,870
  

1,989
  



Tayside
  

243
  

168
  

357
  

577
  

544
  



Forth Valley
  

160
  

172
  

160
  

335
  

277
  



Western Isles
  

1
  



2
  

5
  

14
  



Dumfries & Galloway
  

134
  

149
  

153
  

232
  

199
  



Shetland
  

26
  

27
  

43
  

24
  

17
  



Outside Scotland
  





3
  

2
  

8
  



Orkney
  





1
  







  


Council area of residence
  

Year
  





1995-96
  

1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000
  



Aberdeen City
  

583
  

726
  

812
  

1,051
  

965
  



Dundee City
  

176
  

92
  

251
  

410
  

358
  



City of Edinburgh
  

1,408
  

1,458
  

1,327
  

1,354
  

1,445
  



City of Glasgow
  

2,887
  

3,006
  

2,574
  

2,554
  

2,864
  



Highland
  

59
  

58
  

60
  

75
  

124
  



Stirling
  

40
  

56
  

57
  

93
  

88
  



Fife
  

221
  

384
  

361
  

396
  

428

Education

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there will be a shortage of teachers by 2004 and, if so, what action it is taking to address any such shortfall in teacher numbers.

Mr Jack McConnell: I have recently sent a report on the supply of teachers to the Convener of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee detailing the background to the current position on the collection of information relevant to teacher supply and outlining planned improvements to current methods. Copies of this report have been made available to committee members and it has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre. A response to your specific question can be found at paragraphs 28-38 and Annex A of the report.

Education

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many teaching posts are currently vacant in each local authority area and how many of these posts have been vacant for more than one month.

Mr Jack McConnell: I have recently sent a report on the supply of teachers to the Convener of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee detailing the background to the current position on the collection of information relevant to teacher supply and outlining planned improvements to current methods. Copies of this report have been made available to committee members and it has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre. A response to your specific question can be found at paragraphs 28-36 of the report.

Elderly People

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it has in place to promote and ensure Internet access to online public services for the elderly, particularly in rural areas.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Through its Digital Scotland initiative the Scottish Executive is working towards pervasive and affordable access to the web for people of all ages and in all areas of Scotland. We are committed to universal access to the web by 2005.

  We are also committed to getting all government services online by 2005. The UK online citizens portal www.ukonline.gov.uk is actively supported by the Scottish Executive in its delivery of customer-focused public information and services, and contains a great deal of specific Scottish content which will be of use to people of all ages.

  A new initiative for online services for the elderly is the Aberdeenshire e-care project which is receiving funding from the Modernising Government Fund.

  The e-care project is being run by Aberdeenshire Council in partnership with Grampian Primary Healthcare Trust, Grampian Caredata, Scottish Enterprise Grampian and the voluntary sector. It aims to provide a new Internet portal that gives clear, uncomplicated and comprehensive information to meet the needs of older people aged 65 and over.

Employment

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-10798 by Sarah Boyack on 14 November 2000, how many individuals in Scotland will have lost jobs following the relocation of the Seacat from Stranraer to Troon and thereafter from Troon to Belfast.

Sarah Boyack: This is a matter for the company.

Employment

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to secure a buyer for the Seagate Distribution plant, Irvine and, what action it is taking regarding the planned redundancies there.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Officials are working very closely with Seagate Distribution (UK) in an attempt to secure a buyer for its Irvine operation.

  Local agencies have been made aware of the possibility of redundancies at the facility. Assistance will be provided to those affected through dedicated local action teams, in accordance with the principles outlined in the Scottish Executive PACE framework.

Employment

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what contact it has had with management, unions and other agencies regarding planned redundancies at Fullarton Computer Industries plants in North Ayrshire.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Executive and its agencies have been in close contact with Fullarton’s management, and have discussed the current position with local union representatives and the STUC.

  Assistance will be made available to those affected by redundancy through dedicated local action teams in accordance with the principles outlined in the Scottish Executive PACE framework.

Energy

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it has provided in each of the last three years for the promotion of the services offered by Scotland’s oil and gas sector at trade fairs either in the UK or overseas.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Through the services of Scottish Trade International and Scottish Enterprise, the Scottish Executive has provided direct support to companies, as well as promoting the Scottish oil and gas industry sector, at international trade fairs in the UK and throughout the world. A list of the STI/SEn supported oil and gas trade shows, for the last three years, is below.

  


1998
  



Offshore Technology Conference
  

Houston, US
  



Offshore Northern Seas
  

Stavanger, Norway
  



Rio Oil & Gas
  

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  



Offshore South East Asia
  

Singapore
  



  


1999
  



Australasian Oil & Gas
  

Perth, Australia
  



Offshore Technology Conference
  

Houston, US
  



Argentina Oil & Gas
  

Buenos Aires, Argentina
  



Offshore Europe
  

Aberdeen, UK
  



  


2000
  



Offshore Technology Conference
  

Houston, US
  



National Petroleum Show
  

Calgary, Canada
  



Offshore Northern Seas
  

Stavanger, Norway
  



Rio Oil & Gas
  

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  



Offshore South East Asia
  

Singapore

Environment

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to support the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in domestic settings.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The Scottish Executive has no plans at present to require the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in all dwellings. However, such detectors are being considered for possible inclusion in the package of measures to be available under the Executive’s central heating programme.

Farmers’ Markets

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to undertake any research into the impact of farmers’ markets and what the reason is for its position on this matter.

Ross Finnie: Interest in farmers’ markets is growing and the Rural Affairs Department, together with Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society, has worked closely with the industry in supporting the formation of the Scottish Association of Farmers’ Markets. We will continue to work with the association to monitor the growth of these markets, but do not consider that there is a need for specific research into their impact at the present time.

Fisheries

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details, including the timescale, of any proposed recovery plan for west coast sea fisheries.

Rhona Brankin: An initial recovery plan to protect the west coast cod stocks was agreed at a meeting held on 13 February. This plan comprises two closed areas, one off the north west coast of Scotland, and one in the Firth of Clyde. The closures will be brought in under a Commission emergency regulation which will come into force as soon as possible in March and will run until the end of April.

  An indicative map showing the two areas has been lodged with the Parliament’s Reference Centre. However, confirmation of the detailed co-ordinates for the closed areas has to await the publication of the Commission Regulation.

  A longer-term plan for the area, including technical measures, will be developed over the coming months, in tandem with longer-term plans for the North Sea.

Food Standards

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-10726 by Susan Deacon on 1 December 2000, whether it will issue clear guidance on "additive free organic food"; how it will encourage consumers to check labels to ensure that a product is organic and complies with all relevant food labelling legislation, and how it will ensure that only organic produce which complies with the legislation is labelled "organic".

Susan Deacon: I have been advised by the Food Standards Agency Scotland that labelling requirements for "organic" food are detailed in European legislation, which also provides a list of approved additives. There are nine UK certification bodies for organic products. Any misrepresentation on food labelling is an offence under the 1990 Food Safety Act, sections 14 and 15.

Forestry

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will delay the start of the planning inquiry into the application for a landfill facility at Dry Rig, Ae Forest, Dumfriesshire until the concerns of the objectors regarding the participation of Forest Enterprise have been resolved.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The Scottish Executive determined that it was not necessary to postpone the commencement of the public inquiry over the issue of Forest Enterprise’s participation in the proceedings and the inquiry opened on 13 February as scheduled.

Gaelic

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the proposed Gaelic-medium teachers course at Lews Castle College will commence and what input Jordanhill College of Education is expected to make to it.

Mr Alasdair Morrison: Discussions are ongoing about the development of new arrangements in initial teacher education to enable more Gaelic-speaking students to train for teaching.

Gaelic

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information is being given to people enquiring about the Gaelic-medium teachers course at Lews Castle College and what consultation it undertook with Jordanhill College of Education and Lews Castle College regarding the course.

Mr Alasdair Morrison: The arrangements are a matter for Lews Castle College and the Jordanhill College of Strathclyde University in consultation with the General Teaching Council in the first instance. We are keeping closely in touch with developments.

Health

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what treatment guidelines are issued regarding the prescribing of donepezil hydrochlor for patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

Susan Deacon: In 1998, guidance on the use of donepezil hydrochloride in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease produced by the Standing Medical Advisory Committee in England and endorsed by the National Medical Advisory Committee in Scotland, was issued to all health boards and NHS Trusts. This guidance recommends that treatment with donepezil should be initiated and supervised only by a specialist experienced in the management of dementia.

  On 19 January 2001, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) published their Final Appraisal on the use of donepezil hydrochloride (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon) and galantamine (Reminyl) in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.

  The Health Technology Board for Scotland is currently working on a process to comment on all Final Appraisals from NICE. Treatments for Alzheimer’s disease will be the first topic to go through this process in the spring.

  As an interim measure, the Scottish Executive has asked Drugs and Therapeutics Committees to review any advice they may have provided to their clinicians on the use of these treatments in Alzheimer’s disease, taking into account the NICE guidance.

Health

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many GP surgeries in each health board area have online facilities for booking hospital appointments for their patients and what measurement of usage of such facilities has taken place.

Susan Deacon: One of the pre-requisites for online booking of hospital appointments is a connection to a secure communications network. All GP surgeries in Scotland now have such a connection either to NHSNet or to a Local Health Board Network. In addition to a network connection, online booking of hospital appointments also requires specific software in the GP surgery and electronic out-patient systems in hospitals. Availability of all of the necessary software at the present time is limited. There is now, however, a major programme of work under way in the NHS Scotland to ensure that all GPs and hospitals have all the necessary facilities. This programme, known as Electronic Clinical Communications Implementation (ECCI), includes:

  widespread clinical e-mail including seeking consultants’ opinion;

  co-ordinated referral information;

  electronic booking - protocol-based where appropriate;

  test ordering and results receiving;

  discharge letters and summaries and clinic letters, and

  information in support of shared care.

  IT systems’ capability in support of ECCI is being strengthened by a programme of work entitled Scottish Care Information (SCI). This programme will create a range of applications based on modern software that will enable clinical information to be communicated electronically throughout the NHS Scotland.

Health

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what targets have been set for the number of GP surgeries to have the facility to make online hospital appointments by the year 2003.

Susan Deacon: The booking of out-patient appointments electronically is now included in a wider programme of electronic clinical communications between primary and secondary care. This wider programme, known as Electronic Clinical Communications Implementation (ECCI), includes:

  widespread clinical e-mail including seeking consultants’ opinion;

  co-ordinated referral information;

  electronic booking - protocol-based where appropriate;

  test ordering and results receiving;

  discharge letters and summaries and clinic letters, and

  information in support of shared care.

  Detailed ECCI project plans are being agreed between the Scottish Executive and each health board area. ECCI is a Scotland-wide project and it is planned that all GP surgeries will have the facility to make "online hospital appointments" by 2003.

Health

Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what increases in neurology consultant posts have been agreed in the last 12 months and what future plans exist.

Susan Deacon: Responsibility for employing consultants rests with health boards, who in collaboration with their Trusts and planning partners are best placed to determine the health needs for their area.

  The number of consultant neurologists has increased over the last three years. The numbers are listed below:

  


Year
  

Headcount
  

Whole-Time Equivalent
  



1997
  

32
  

29.7
  



1998
  

33
  

31.3
  



19991


37
  

34.7
  



  Note:

  1. Information is at 30 September 1999 and is the latest available.

Health

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research has been conducted to determine the causes of hospital-acquired infection, including methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus , and whether it will make copies of that research available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre

Susan Deacon: The Chief Scientist Office (CSO) of the Scottish Executive Health Department has responsibility for encouraging and supporting research to improve both the health of the people in Scotland and the services provided by the NHS. CSO is aware of 160 ongoing or recently completed research projects into the causes of hospital-acquired infection in the UK, 17 of which are in Scotland. CSO itself is currently funding one research project on methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), in addition to a number of research projects on drug resistant organisms. Details of allthese projects are available from the National Research Register, a copy of which is in the Parliament’s Reference Centre.

Health

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is on the purchase of private hospital beds to deal with pressure on the NHS.

Susan Deacon: Local NHS Boards and NHS Trusts may, as has always been the case, purchase services and capacity from independent providers to deal with pressures and peaks in demand.

Health

Alex Fergusson (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients treated on an acute basis were discharged from Dumfries Royal Infirmary and, of these, how many were discharged into (i) registered nursing homes, (ii) registered residential homes and (iii) local community hospitals in each of the last five years.

Susan Deacon: The information requested in (a) is shown in Table 1.

  The specific information requested in (b) is not collected centrally. However, limited information on where patients are discharged/transferred to is available and is shown in Table 2. This includes discharges to institutions (including nursing and residential homes) and other hospitals.

  Table 1

  Number of acute discharges* from Dumfries Royal Infirmary, 1995-96 to 1999-2000#

  


Year
  

1995-96
  

1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000#




Number of Discharges**


25,760
  

25,587
  

27,503
  

28,918
  

29,665
  



  Notes:

  * Non-obstetric/non-psychiatric specialities, excluding Geriatric Long Stay.

  #  Provisional.

  ** Includes within hospital transfers.

  Table 2

  Number of acute discharges* from Dumfries Royal Infirmary, 1995-96 to 1999-2000#

  showing selected "discharge/transfer to" details

  


Year
  

1995-96
  

1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000#




Total number of discharges**; of which discharges 
  to: 
  

25,760
  

25,587
  

27,503
  

28,918
  

29,665
  



Place of residence: Institution*** 


xx


xx


371
  

235
  

271
  



Transfer within same hospital
  

2,805
  

2,848
  

3,185
  

3,392
  

3,687
  



Transfer to another NHS hospital
  

882
  

933
  

1,012
  

1,034
  

987
  



  Source for both tables: ISD Scotland, SMR01, SMR01 (November 2000).

  Notes:

  * Non-obstetric/non-psychiatric specialities, excluding Geriatric Long Stay.

  # Provisional.

  ** Includes within hospital transfers.

  *** Includes nursing/residential/hostel/group homes (funded by NHS, local authorities or privately) and NHS Partnership Hospitals.

  xx Not collected prior to 1997-98.

Homelessness

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities have not changed their policies on helping young homeless people since the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 introduced a duty on Scottish local authorities to accommodate homeless 16- and 17-year-olds.

Nicol Stephen: We have no evidence to suggest that local authorities are failing to carry out their statutory duties to assist homeless young people. We have commissioned research from York University into how authorities discharge their responsibilities for throughcare and after care of 16- and 17-year-olds formerly looked after by them. The results are expected to be available in September.

Housing

Dr Winnie Ewing (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many empty properties in (a) Highland Council area, (b) the Western Isles, (c) the Orkney Islands, (d) the Shetland Islands and (e) Scotland are targeted to be brought back into use under the Empty Homes Initiative; how many such homes had been brought back into use in each area by the end of 2000, and what target has been set for each of these areas under this initiative for the end of 2002.

Ms Margaret Curran: The table below provides the information requested. It lists the number of empty properties expected to be returned to use by 2002 under the Empty Homes Initiative from its inception in 1997 and shows the number of properties returned by the end of 2000. While Orkney Islands Council did not receive funding to return any empty properties, it was allocated £36,000 to fund an Empty Homes Officer who is assisting the council in its assessment of the extent of empty properties on the island and the development of an empty homes strategy.

  


Local Authority
  

Empty properties expected to be returned 
  by end 2002
  

Empty properties returned as at end 2000
  



Highland
  

75
  

47
  



Western Isles
  

6
  

6
  



Shetland Islands
  

29
  

13
  



Scotland
  

1,522
  

721

Industry

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it will reverse the continued decline of Glasgow’s manufacturing base.

Ms Wendy Alexander: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1O-2599 on 30 November.

Industry

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to secure a buyer for Adam Cunningham & Son.

Ms Wendy Alexander: KPMG have been appointed as receivers to Adam Cunningham & Son and are pursuing the best way forward for the business.

  The Executive and local agencies are in contact with the company and have offered their assistance with this process.

Land Reform

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it intends to publish its Land Reform Bill and how long the consultation process will be.

Mr Jim Wallace: I am pleased to announce that the Scottish Executive’s Draft Land Reform (Scotland) Bill: Consultation Paper is published today. Copies of the consultation paper and the accompanying Draft Scottish Outdoor Access Code will be sent to the relevant Parliamentary Committees and to all MSPs. Further copies will be available from SPICe and from the land reform website, at www.scotland.gov.uk/landreform, following the launch.

  A 12-week consultation period will follow, with the closing date for responses being Friday, 18 May 2001.

Medical Access

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is funding any research into the effectiveness of Modafinil for providing relief to sufferers of sleep apnoea.

Susan Deacon: Although the Chief Scientist Office (CSO) is currently funding one study on sleep apnoea, it does not specifically address the effectiveness of Modafinil in providing relief to sufferers. CSO would be pleased to receive research applications on this issue, which would be subject to the usual peer and committee review.

  More widely, CSO is aware of 100 ongoing or recently completed projects in the UK on sleep apnoea, 12 of which relate to Scotland. Details of these studies are available on the National Research Register, a copy of which is in the Parliament’s Reference Centre.

  The results of the projects undertaken throughout the UK will inform the future direction of research and treatment of this condition.

Midwifery

Mr Keith Raffan (Mid Scotland and Fife) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-11191 by Susan Deacon on 30 November 2000, how many of the nurses and midwives recruited in (a) 1997, (b) 1998 and (c) 1999 were employed on (i) full-time and (ii) part-time contracts.

Susan Deacon: The information requested is shown in the table.

  Qualified Nursing and Midwifery staff in the NHSiS by contract type – net joiners

  




1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  



Total
  

2,951
  

3,029
  

3,188
  



Whole-time
  

1,891
  

1,956
  

2,066
  



Part-time
  

1,060
  

1,073
  

1,122
  



  Source: National Manpower Statistics from payroll.

  ISD Scotland.

Ministerial Correspondence

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Health and Community Care will answer my letter of 28 June 2000 regarding Mr and Mrs Innes and the incidence of cepacia.

Susan Deacon: A full reply was issued on 24 November 2000.

NHS Trusts

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the budget is in each NHS Trust for information management and technology for 2000-01.

Susan Deacon: This information is not held centrally.

Nursing

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to provide training for epilepsy specialist nurses.

Susan Deacon: Post-registration education for nurses, including training for epilepsy specialist nurses, is a matter for NHS employers.

Parliamentary Questions

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide a substantive answer to question S1W-7142 lodged on 24 May 2000.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The question was answered on 24 November.

Prescription Charges

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans for the provision of Salbutamol or Ventolin inhalers to be exempt from prescription charges.

Susan Deacon: We have no plans to do so.

Prison Service

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-9789 by Ms Wendy Alexander on 4 October 2000, when it will publish the findings and recommendations of the review of the Tolerable Standard.

Jackie Baillie: The result of the review of the Tolerable Standard was announced in December. The Standard is to be amended to include all the standard amenities as currently set out in the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 but will otherwise remain unchanged. The Executive has also announced publication of a consultation paper on a new measurement of house condition: the Index of Housing Quality . Responses to that paper have been asked for by 30 April.

Public Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the 2001-02 Public Transport Fund, to detail the bids which were (a) granted in full, (b) granted in part, (c) rejected and (d) deferred, and what the values were of any awards made.

Sarah Boyack: Details of bids to the Public Transport Fund for projects commencing in 2001-02 which were granted in full, granted in part, rejected and deferred are set out in the table.

  


Local Authority
  

Project
  

Status
  

Amount Awarded
(£ million)
  



Dundee City Council
  

North West Arterial Corridor
  

Granted in Full
  

1.465
  



East Ayrshire Council
  

Cycling and Walking in Kilmarnock
  

Granted in Full
  

0.670
  



East Dunbartonshire Council
  

Local Travel Pattern Database
  

Granted in Full
  

0.250
  



East Lothian Council
  

Musselburgh Public Transport Spine
  

Granted in Full
  

0.642
  



Fife Council
  

Markinch Interchange and Bus Link
  

Granted in Full
  

1.551
  



Glasgow City Council
  

Quality Bus Corridors
  

Granted in Full
  

2.136
  



Highland Council
  

Transport Interchanges
  

Granted in Full
  

1.727
  



Orkney Islands Council
  

Instrument Landing System-Kirkwall
  

Granted in Full
  

0.600
  



Perth & Kinross Council
  

Perth Park & Ride and Cycle Routes
  

Granted in Full
  

1.175
  



Renfrewshire Council
  

Integrated Transport Improvements
  

Granted in Full
  

0.268
  



Scottish Borders Council
  

Borders Railway Parliamentary Order
  

Granted in Full
  

1.865
  



South Lanarkshire Council
  

Rutherglen Bus Priority
  

Granted in Full
  

0.725
  



Aberdeenshire Council*
  

Railway Station Improvements
  

Granted in Part
  

0.300
  



Argyll & Bute Council
  

Cycleways - Helensburgh and Lomond
  

Granted in Part
  

1.900
  



Clackmannanshire Council
  

Integrating Rail into Alloa
  

Granted in Part
  

6.500
  



Dumfries & Galloway Council
  

Stranraer Integrated Transport Package
  

Granted in Part
  

0.943
  



East Renfrewshire Council
  

Cycling and Walking Facilities
  

Granted in Part
  

0.450
  



Edinburgh City Council
  

Quality Bus Network for the 21st Century
  

Granted in Part
  

8.468
  



Falkirk Council
  

Park and Ride and Visitor Access to Falkirk Wheel
  

Granted in Part
  

1.600
  



Midlothian Council
  

Edinburgh to Penicuik Rail Link
  

Rejected
  

Nil
  



North Ayrshire Council**
  

Quality Bus Corridor
  

Rejected
  

Nil
  



Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar
  

Sound of Barra Ferry Service
  

Deferred
  

Nil
  



Inverclyde Council
  

Gourock Integrated Transport Interchange
  

Deferred
  

Nil
  



South Ayrshire Council
  

South Ayrshire Integrated Transport Partnership
  

Deferred
  

Nil
  



West Lothian Council
  

CERT into West Lothian
  

Deferred
  

Nil
  



Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority
  

Multi Modal Information Project
  

Deferred
  

Nil
  



Total Awarded
  
 
 

£33.235
  



  * Remainder of bid deferred.

  ** Awarded £0.250 million to assist in developing the project further.

Residential Care

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether charging older people for personal care through compulsory sale of their home accords with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answers given to questions S1W-10578 and S1W-10579.

Scottish Higher Education Funding Council

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council has spent on consultancy fees in connection with the formulation of its proposed funding plans.

Ms Wendy Alexander: As part of its Review of Teaching Funding, the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council employed a consultant to perform a study into the efficient cost of teaching in higher education between February and September 2000 at a cost of £57,550.

Scottish Higher Education Funding Council

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether all information regarding the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council’s proposed funding plans, in particular the amount of money each institution will receive, will be published.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The allocation to individual institutions of formula-based grants for 2001-02 academic year, which cover the majority of the funding to be allocated, will be published by the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council in March. There will be some further allocations for particular grants throughout the year.

  In-principle decisions on the total SHEFC budget for 2001-02 were made at the council’s November 2000 meeting and announced in "Highlight" on its website in December. Detailed decisions on the overall allocation of funding made by the council at its February meeting will be published through the same medium later this month.

  SHEFC is also currently undertaking a Review of Teaching Funding to inform future years’ allocations. Any recommendations for change would not be implemented before 2002-03. A consultation paper was published on 19 December and a further paper was published on 9 February providing the rationale for the council’s proposals and technical descriptions of how illustrative figures were derived to inform discussion and response to the consultation.

Scottish Transport Group Pension Scheme

Mr Alex Salmond (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to make an announcement on the Scottish Transport Group pension schemes.

Sarah Boyack: I refer Alex Salmond to my response to the member’s business debate motion S1M-1096 on 25 October 2000.

Smoking

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how community pharmacists can be more fully utilised in relation to smoking cessation.

Susan Deacon: Pharmacists are committed to reducing the burden of illness imposed on Scotland by tobacco use. Pharmacists already supply nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), provide smoking cessation reminder messages and evidence-based information about matters related to smoking, and offer psychological support for smokers attempting to quit.

  The Scottish Executive is at present consulting on a proposal to make all NRT available on NHS prescription. The community pharmacist is ideally placed to take on a supporting and counselling role each time a prescription for NRT is dispensed or each time a product is sold over the counter.

  In the future, if pharmacists are granted NHS prescribing rights as envisaged in the Review of Prescribing, Supply and Administration of Medicines, they will be in a position to extend their role to the provision of NRT on NHS prescription. This would allow patients to access smoking cessation services according to their individual needs.

Telecommunications

Bristow Muldoon (Livingston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what timescale it envisages for bringing forward legislation following the end of the consultation period on its paper Consultation on proposed changes to permitted development arrangements for telecommunications development on 16 February 2001.

Mr Sam Galbraith: As indicated in Working together for Scotland: A Programme for Government , we will revise planning controls for mobile phone masts by mid-2001.

Transport

Bristow Muldoon (Livingston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what initiatives it plans to promote European Car Free Day 2001.

Sarah Boyack: I will be launching a Scottish Travel Awareness Campaign in May, which will aim to increase the number of journeys made by walking, cycling and public transport and to encourage more sensible use of the car. We are currently in discussion with transport operators and local authorities with an aim to developing specific initiatives, including establishing links to sustainable travel events.

Transport

Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail, for each month since the scheme’s inception, (a) the total number of car parking spaces provided and (b) the average daily number of car parking spaces occupied at the Ferrytoll park and ride facility in Fife.

Sarah Boyack: The information requested is not held centrally as the Ferrytoll park and ride facility is the responsibility of Fife Council.

Water

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the outcome is of its recent consultation on the affordability of water and sewerage charges.

Mr Sam Galbraith: Following consideration of the consultation report I have decided to introduce a scheme on the lines set out in the consultation paper and the threshold of the scheme for year one is to be set at £180.

  A report compiled following completion of the consultation process has today been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre and will shortly be available on the Scottish Executive website.

Water Authorities

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much income each water authority raised from (a) domestic water and sewerage charges, (b) non-domestic water and sewerage charges, (c) borrowing, (d) government grants and (e) other sources in each year since 1996; what each of these figures represents as a percentage of each water authority’s total income in each of these years, and how much income, in cash terms and as a percentage of total income, each authority expects to raise from each of these sources in 2001-02 and any future years for which projections are available.

Mr Sam Galbraith: Actual and projected figures for the years 1996-97 to 2001-02 are given in the table below. Figures beyond 2001-02 will not be available until after completion of the next Strategic Review of Charges.

  Historical financial figures for the water authorities can be found in their published annual accounts. Copies of their accounts as laid before the Scottish Parliament, and pre-devolution, the Westminster Parliament, back to 1996-97 are held in the Parliament’s Information Reference Centre.

  West of Scotland Water Authority

  £ million

  




1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000
  

2000-01
  

2001-02
  



Domestic
  

111
  

117.9
  

132.6
  

148.5
  

173
  

206.5
  



Non-domestic
  

123.2
  

120.4
  

124.4
  

121.3
  

125.7
  

128.7
  



Other income
  

8.9
  

9.1
  

8.5
  

8.1
  

9.1
  

9.5
  



Grants
  

0
  

0
  

0.1
  

0.8
  

0.2
  

0.2
  



Total income
  

243.1
  

247.4
  

265.6
  

278.7
  

308
  

344.9
  



Borrowing
  

83.9
  

62.4
  

71.3
  

94.4
  

87
  

91
  



  North of Scotland Water Authority

  £ million

  

 

1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000
  

2000-01
  

2001-02
  



Domestic
  

58.6
  

62.5
  

70.2
  

79.4
  

115.4
  

134.7
  



Non-domestic
  

53.9
  

57.1
  

59.4
  

65.7
  

79.7
  

84.2
  



Other income
  

7.8
  

8.9
  

10.1
  

9.8
  

10.4
  

12.7
  



Grants
  

24.4
  

1.7
  

3.1
  

7.5
  

5
  

1.2
  



Total income
  

144.7
  

130.2
  

142.8
  

162.4
  

210.5
  

232.8
  



Borrowing
  

41.6
  

47.1
  

43.7
  

39.7
  

50
  

87.3
  



  East of Scotland Water Authority

  £ million

  

 

1996-97
  

1997-98
  

1998-99
  

1999-2000
  

2000-01
  

2001-02
  



Domestic
  

72.8
  

80.4
  

92.5
  

101.6
  

128.8
  

152.9
  



Non-domestic
  

72.6
  

74.1
  

83.4
  

87.6
  

82.1
  

73.8
  



Other income
  

16.1
  

18.8
  

18.1
  

18.5
  

21.3
  

22.8
  



Grants
  

5.9
  

1.1
  

3.8
  

0
  

0
  

0
  



Total income
  

167.4
  

174.4
  

197.8
  

207.7
  

232.2
  

249.5
  



Borrowing
  

61.1
  

56.7
  

50.7
  

78.6
  

74.1
  

77.1